[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 51 (Thursday, March 14, 2024)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 18529-18530]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-05587]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 89 , No. 51 / Thursday, March 14, 2024 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 18529]]

                Proclamation 10710 of March 11, 2024

                
National Equal Pay Day, 2024

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                On National Equal Pay Day, we highlight the injustice 
                of gender wage gaps by marking how far into this year 
                women have to work, on average, to earn what men made 
                last year. Over a lifetime, these inequities can amount 
                to millions of dollars lost for women who do not 
                receive the wages they deserve. Equal pay is about far 
                more than a paycheck. It is about living up to the 
                fundamental values that define who we are as a Nation--
                equality, dignity, and fairness. Today and every day, 
                we continue working toward the promise of equal pay, 
                recognizing that when women thrive, we all thrive.

                Women's labor force participation is the highest it has 
                been in decades, and the gender pay gap is the 
                narrowest it has ever been on record. Yet, despite this 
                progress, the fight for equal pay continues. Women 
                working full-time and year-round are paid an average of 
                84 cents for every dollar paid to men. In more than 90 
                percent of occupations, women earn less than men--and 
                these disparities are even greater for women of color 
                and women with disabilities. The pay gap is a product 
                of the systemic barriers that women have long faced 
                when it comes to accessing good-paying jobs and 
                opportunities. Further, caregiving responsibilities for 
                children, loved ones with disabilities, and aging 
                family members disproportionately fall on women, which 
                can mean missing work, cutting hours, and leaving jobs.

                America cannot have the strongest economy in the world 
                while leaving women--half our workforce--behind. When I 
                came into office, women's labor participation rate had 
                fallen to its lowest level in more than three decades, 
                in part because the COVID-19 pandemic had forced women 
                out of the workforce to juggle caregiving 
                responsibilities. In response, my Administration's 
                American Rescue Plan invested billions of dollars to 
                support working families, powering the strongest job 
                creation in history. The law also helped keep the doors 
                open to 220,000 child care centers, 90 percent of which 
                were owned and staffed by women.

                Since I took office, nearly 15 million jobs have been 
                created, and we are working relentlessly to ensure 
                these jobs are accessible to women. Across the major 
                laws I have signed--such as the Bipartisan 
                Infrastructure Law, which is rebuilding our Nation; the 
                CHIPS and Science Act, which is restoring our 
                technological edge; and the Inflation Reduction Act, 
                which is paving the way for a clean energy future--we 
                are making sure women have a fair shot at securing the 
                good-paying jobs being created. For the first time, 
                firms receiving significant Federal dollars will be 
                required to ensure they have high-quality child care 
                available to their workers. I have signed a sweeping 
                Executive Order that includes more than 50 directives 
                to expand access to affordable, high-quality care and 
                provide support for care workers and family caregivers. 
                Additionally, I signed legislation that provides new 
                protections for pregnant and nursing workers. This past 
                year, the Small Business Administration delivered $5.1 
                billion in loans to women-owned businesses.

                To advance pay equity, my Administration has committed 
                to leading by example and making the Federal Government 
                a model employer. That is

[[Page 18530]]

                why we have taken action to close persistent wage gaps. 
                We finalized a rule ensuring that Federal agencies no 
                longer consider an applicant's current or past pay when 
                determining their future salaries--eliminating pay 
                inequities that can otherwise follow workers from job 
                to job. My Administration has proposed regulations to 
                advance pay equity and pay transparency for workers on 
                Federal contracts.

                We are making tremendous progress, but there is still 
                much more we must do. My Administration continues to 
                call on the Congress to pass the Paycheck Fairness 
                Act--commonsense legislation that would increase pay 
                transparency and give workers more tools to fight sex-
                based pay discrimination.

                On National Equal Pay Day, let us redouble our efforts 
                to ensure that women get the pay they have earned and 
                deserve. Let us recommit to giving our daughters the 
                same opportunities as our sons. Let us remember our 
                responsibility to live up to our Nation's fundamental 
                values of equality, dignity, and fairness for all 
                Americans.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, by virtue of the 
                authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws 
                of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 12, 
                2024, as National Equal Pay Day. I call upon all 
                Americans to recognize the full value of women's skills 
                and their significant contributions to the labor force, 
                acknowledge the injustice of wage inequality, and join 
                efforts to achieve equal pay.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                eleventh day of March, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                eighth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2024-05587
Filed 3-13-24; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F4-P